


The Beast Within

by WerewolfKing350



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Animagus, F/F, F/M, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Maybe Drarry, Not Beta Read, Pairings to be decided - Freeform, Werewolf Bites, Werewolf Harry Potter, Werewolf Turning, more tags to come
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-09
Updated: 2017-07-20
Packaged: 2018-11-29 22:30:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11450382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WerewolfKing350/pseuds/WerewolfKing350
Summary: When Harry goes home for the holidays during his first year he has a mysterious encounter that changes his life in ways he didn't think imaginable. What will become of Harry and how will this impact Harry's destiny as the Boy Who Lived. (AU/ Professor Lupin is DADA professor Harry's first year.)I had originally posted this on FanFiction but I'm re-writing and posting this here for you.





	1. Chapter 1

Preface

It was moments like this that made Harry have trouble believing just how spoiled Dudley was. In the moments when Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon had trouble believing the extent of their son's greed, Harry always hopes that they'll finally tell him to suck it up and wait but once again, Dudley gets his way and as usual, it was up to Harry to make sure Dudley got his candy. Oh, how Harry longed to be back at Hogwarts where he was treated like a person and not some kind of slave.

It was the day after Christmas and eleven-year-old Harry Potter was trudging up the street with the chocolates Dudley absolutely had to have right at that moment. Aunt Petunia never denied Dudley anything out of fear of the wild tantrums the boy would pull and today.

They almost said no but they could see his cheeks puffing up with anger and they saw his eyes twitch towards the Christmas tree. Harry knew they'd do anything to prevent Dudley from picking up the tree and throwing it around. Of course, Harry knew that Dudley wouldn't have the strength or energy to actually pick up the tree but he could know it over and smash Aunt Petunia's priceless ornaments.

Harry had wondered briefly why they wanted him home for Christmas but their motives became clear because Harry was treated like a live-in butler. The minute he'd arrived home, he'd been presented a list of chores and duties and when he was expected to have them done.

The icing on the cake was when the Dursleys started carrying around bells that they rang whenever they wanted Harry's attention.

Tonight, when Duddley had thrown a fit about his chocolates, Mr Dursley finally caved and sent Harry to pick up a few boxes of the sweets; just enough to keep Dudley content for the night. Any rational adult would have driven to pick up the chocolates instead of sending an eleven-year-old out to retrieve them at two o'clock in the morning, but the Dursleys were, by no definition of the word, rational. Not even Harry was used to being awakened in the middle of the night to retrieve sweets.

Harry was walking past a patch of woods when he heard whimpering coming from a bush. Harry rolled his eyes and began walking towards the bush. No doubt Mrs Scott's stupid dog was caught in the bush again. As he got closer he could tell it was definitely a canine but it wasn't Mrs Scott's... This was without a doubt the ugliest dog Harry had ever seen in his life and it was indeed stuck.

Harry reached in and freed the unusually bony and muscular dog which repaid the favour by jumping up sinking its massive teeth into Harry's arm. Harry let out a cry of pain so shrill that the dog jumped and released Harry's arm. For a minute before Harry blacked out completely, he could have sworn he saw the dog walk on two feet like a human...

***** ***** *****

It had been a week since that dog bit Harry and his shoulder was still itchy. Upon arriving home (with Dudley's sweets) Harry was rushed off to an evening nurse for a rabies shot... "We aren't going to risk Dudley catching rabies because the freak got bit by a wild dog," Petunia had said before yelling at Harry not to get blood on the car seats.

Since then Harry has been experiencing some mild side effects from the shot. Harry often found himself light-headed, irritable, moody and tired. Harry actually slept the whole train ride back to Hogwarts; which was fine with Hermione because this gave her the opportunity to do some "light" reading for Lupin's class. She tried to get Harry engaged with a book but he muttered something about needing five more minutes and proceeded to fall deeper into sleep and remained that way until they arrived at Hogwarts.

Remus Lupin was ready for the second term to begin. He took a deep breath and took in the smells of the wonderful food; his enhanced senses made experiences like meals times more interesting. But he was most excited to see Harry coming back to class. His late best friends son had turned out to be the perfect combination of Lily and James; Lily's brains and James personality.

He watched as Harry filed into the feast tagging after Hermione and he felt a wave of concern wash over him. Harry was a bit flushed and looked just about ready to curl up on the floor for a nap rather than to tuck in for a feast. Harry had most likely caught some type of infection from the muggles. He wondered briefly if they were going to have an outbreak on their hands but diminished the thought. He could see Poppy watching Harry with her usual sharp eyes and knew she'd be right over there if she believed it was serious.

The next two weeks flew by and before Harry knew it he was settled back into his routine and back to spending time with Ron, Hermione, Hagrid and Lupin. Harry loved spending time with Lupin because of how much Lupin knew about his dad and in these past couple weeks they seemed to be bonding really well.

Unfortunately, it took Harry about a week to recover upon arriving at Hogwarts. But despite the fact that Harry's dizzy spells had since passed, along with the constant feverish sensation, he still felt tense and irritable and it has since started to get worse. He found himself confused and a little nervous by his irritability and mood lately. He wished he knew what was wrong but he didn't. Maybe he was finally going mad from spending one too many days with the Dursleys.

Even Lupin noticed the small boy becoming defensive and easily set off by little things and had since tried talking to Harry about whatever was bothering him but had come up with nothing that could explain his unusual mood.

With the full moon approaching in six days, Lupin had to bite back frustration as Harry would argue with Malfoy over things that even Ron found insignificant and not worth getting upset about. The only conclusion Lupin could Logically come up with was on-set puberty but there was a part of him that felt that wasn't right and he needed to find out what was wrong with his best friends boy.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus and Harry's friends are baffled by Harry's behaviour and Harry finds a text that leads to distress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is short but I'm writing them progressively longer. When I originally wrote the story, it was much shorter but there's only so much I can add to prewritten text.

Lupin stared out the window before stepping into his defence against the dark arts class. He could feel the shift coming in his bones, with every fibre of his being.

The full moon would rise in two days. But right now his main concern was Harry who had just got detention this evening over a screaming match with Draco over a seat. Lupin actually had to step in before Harry could leap over the desk and start a fight.

"What happened, Ron?" Remus asked Ron, who unlike Harry, seemed to be in a mood to talk. Harry was presently too busy trying to grab at a very confused looking Draco Malfoy.

"I don't even know! Harry dropped his quill, Draco picked it up and Harry freaked. I don't know why he got mad," Ron said watching Harry with wide worried eyes. Harry was slowly calming down, with the help of Hermione who was going over a breathing exercise with Harry and it appeared to be working.

"Miss Granger, could you take Harry outside for a cool down?" Remus told Hermione, who grabbed Harry's hand and took the red-faced boy out the door for a walk along the corridor. Remus wondered what had Harry on such a short fuse and began wondering if something had happened over the holidays. Maybe someone had hurt him and he was having trouble processing.

Remus felt his blood boil at some of the possibilities that could be upsetting Harry. If anyone had hurt his cub, they'd deal with him personally and they'd wish they'd never been born. Nobody got away with hurting a wolf's cub and got away with it.

"Is Harry going to be alright?"

Remus found himself surprised to hear Draco Malfoy whisper that to him but Draco was staring with wide eyes towards the door, his face was pale and he was obviously worried.

"I hope so. Are you okay, Mister Malfoy?"

Draco nodded, still watching the door with a nervous and worried expression. Ron was looking at Draco with a look of confusion, obviously trying to figure out why Draco would care one way or another what was wrong with Harry.

***LINEBREAK***

"Are you sure everything is alright, Harry? It's been three weeks and you've been extremely irritable. Did you aunt or uncle hurt you, Harry?" Lupin asked Harry, who had calmed down considerably since his walk with Hermione but still seemed on edge and frustrated. But what concerned him, was the look of confusion is the boy's eyes.

Harry knew Lupin was trying to figure out the reason for Harry's outburst but Harry honestly didn't know what had him so irritable. It was like Harry only had two emotional states; calm and red-hot fury lately but there was no in between.

One minute, he was fine and the next minute, every part of him wanted to act out on aggression that hadn't been there minutes ago. He found himself getting angry over people trying to help him, loud noises, and at one point he got angry because his trunk wouldn't open at first try.

"No; they didn't hurt me," Harry growled; his face still red with anger, once again, he couldn't figure out why he was getting angry and wished he could cool off. He immediately went on to do a breathing exercise Hermione had taught him. It didn't help that his whole body was aching like he had the flu or something, it just made even more irritated.

"Did you get in a fight with Ron and Hermione?"

"No, professor; everything is fine. Can I please go? I'm starving!" Harry whined just wanting to get up and move around. Lately on top of being irritable like a grizzly bear, he'd also started to become very restless and unable to sit still for great periods of time. He'd heard Snape comparing him to a moody, hyper active five-year-old. But sitting still for too long, made him feel like time was moving in slow motion and the need to move and do something becomes all consuming and it becomes all Harry can think of.

Lupin nodded and sent Harry along on his way.

As he stood up to leave, he felt his arm getting itchy so he removed his robe and scratched at his bandage. He couldn't figure out why it was still itching. He considered going to the hospital wing but he knew he couldn't sit still for that much time, so he opted to go for a run to calm down before bed and maybe, he might actually be able to sleep tonight.

***LINEBREAK***

To say Lupin was frustrated with Harry was an understatement. No, he wasn't angry with Harry; he was angry with the fact that he couldn't figure out what was wrong with him and that wasn't sitting well with him. Remus was always good at reading people and helping them with their problems but he was baffled.

These were the kind of outbursts you'd expect to see in a werewolf around this time but an average eleven-year-old boy? Watching Harry leave he shook his head with frustration. He felt like he should know the answer somehow and the fact that he couldn't lay his fingers on it was simply frustrating him more. The answer was right in front of him, he knew it but he just wasn't seeing it.

The next morning Lupin was doing some research to help Snape improve his potion when his first class of the day class walked in. He set his book down and began teaching the class.

Today Harry somehow seemed to be much more restless and irritable than yesterday; like it was actually painful for him to sit still long enough to receive simple instructions. Lupin had gotten after Harry no less than three times about tipping his chair backwards before a loud thump forced him out of his thoughts.

"Harry, see me after class;" Lupin muttered getting extremely frustrated by Harry's behaviour and wished he could get to the bottom of it. Remus had been teaching Harry long enough to know that this was out-of-character behaviour and if he couldn't figure out what was wrong within the next few weeks, he was going to take the boy to see Poppy.

***LINEBREAK***

After class, Harry told Ron and Hermione that he'd see them later. Harry went up to the front of the classroom while Lupin had gone back to take a potion to sooth his pounding headache. Harry felt his own head aching and wished he could ask the professor for one but knew that would just get him rushed out to the hospital wing.

Harry made his way to Professor Lupin's desk and an illustration from one of the books caught his eyes. Glancing at the picture, Harry felt himself pale and his head started spinning as he began to register what the book in front of him read.

The picture looked exactly like the dog that had bitten Harry just a few weeks ago; except according to the book, it wasn't a dog but a werewolf. The paragraph under the picture said werewolves spread their infection by bite and on the full moon the beast comes out and they often kill anyone who comes near. Words like 'vicious' and blood-thirsty' caught his eyes, making his head spin more and more.

Harry put his hand over his bandage and began choking on air as panic settled in as he backed away from the desk and towards the door. The room began to blur... He had to get out of here... He couldn't risk his friends. No, he wasn't safe to be around. No! He had to leave, he had to...

"Harry, I'll be out in a minute. I know something is wrong and I'm going to help you," Lupin shouted causing Harry to jump and stumble even closer to the door.

"I don't think you can!" Harry exclaimed, his voice breaking as tears started running down his Remus could make his way out from his office, Harry ran out the door clutching his arm, his legs shaking more and more with every step he took.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry shifts for the first time and gets the whole school put on lockdown.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter updated: September 13, 2017

Harry spent the night tossing and turning. All he could think about what was going to happen to him tomorrow, what might happen tomorrow. He'd gone to bed early that night telling Ron and Hermione he wasn't feeling well; upon seeing how pale and shaky he was, neither questioned it. Hermione had even offered to take Harry to the hospital wing. But he refused because was far too restless to spend the afternoon in the hospital wing.

As Harry thought about it, he decided that it was unlikely. He was a nice kid and he was just paranoid. Maybe he saw that dog wrong, that was it. He'd passed out after all, so maybe it was all in his head... Yes, that was it. It was all in his head. It was just a book, after all, it might have been fiction. With that thought, Harry fell off into a deep sleep.

Lupin didn't show up to Defense Against the Dark Arts today so everyone sat and listened to the substitute read a chapter they had already read, directly from the book. At one point Harry let out a cry of impatience that earned him a detention that evening.

The rest of the day was a long and painful blur for Harry; he was achy, tired, frustrated and a little nauseous and just wanted the day to be done so he could go to bed. In the back of his mind, he thought about what he'd read the day before but he told himself that it was crazy.

That evening at promptly seven he was escorted over to Hagrid's to start his detention. Harry felt stiff and sore as he made his way down the path, he also felt like he was going to throw up.

"Are you okay, Harry?" Professor Mason asked, seeing how pale Harry looked, along with beads of sweat on Harry's face.

When Harry opened his mouth to answer, a fiery pain travelled up and down Harry's spine causing him to bend over and let out a wail of pain. Professor Mason seemed both shocked and startled by the eleven-year old's expression of such pain. But the pain didn't stop there. It travelled all throughout Harry like flames; soon he heard to sickening sound of his own bones breaking and clothes ripping. Harry had never experienced pain like this before in his life, not even when Dudley ran over Harry with his bike while his friends held him down; it was one of the few times he'd even seen Dudley get punished.

When Professor Mason saw what was happening, his face went chalk white, He knew if he wanted to live, he was going to have to run away from Harry; who's terror filled eyes told him that he had no idea what was even happening. The poor child was experiencing something no person should ever have to go through. As much as Professor Mason hated abandoning his student in such a time, he knew he had no choice but to leave the child.

"Help me! It hurts! I need... hospital wing!" cried Harry as his grip on human thoughts began to be ripped away from his mind. He vaguely saw Professor Mason start running in an unknown direction but Harry was in far to much pain to even keep track of where the man had gone. He was in too much pain to care that he was lying in the middle of the ground, that his uniform was being destroyed beyond repair or those little sharp pebbles were digging into his bubbling skin. And soon, Harry was gone and the wolf was in his place.

***LINEBREAK***

Professor Mason made a mad dash into the school, upon finding Dumbledore he whispered, "Code blue." Professor Dumbledore paled, recognising the code that had never been implemented and began getting professors to send all students to their dorms with their windows closed.

Ever since Lupin was a student, 'code blue' was something that was taught to all Hogwarts staff along with any other threat that might put the students at risk, especially now that Remus was a Professor. Of course, Remus had his potion but they had the measures in place just in case they needed them. It was moments like this that made Dumbledore glad that they still enforced these drills.

"Well, well, well; I'm assuming Lupin has gotten away," Snape sneered when he arrived in the staff room. "Who's idea was it to have a werewolf as a professor, Dumbledore?"

Dumbledore had called an emergency meeting with McGonagall, Severus, Mason, Flitwick and Sprout; the heads of houses needed to know why they were putting all of their students on lockdown. The rest of the staff were going to be receiving a less detailed version of tonight's meeting; without mentions of names, circumstance or any unnecessary specifics.

Before the headmaster could get up and say something, Professor Mason stood between them and quietly muttered that it wasn't Lupin. He was still pale and a look of worry and concern was etched into the new professor's face.

"And I can attest to that as I went out of my way to glance in on Remus when the Code Blue was declared," Dumbledore announced causing concerned looks to appear on the professors' faces. "He was in his office and looking rather tranquil and relaxed, if I might add."

"So if it's not Lupin, who is it?" McGonagall asked nervously; she, of course, had recognised the code and had immediately assumed it was Professor Lupin as well. But somehow knowing it wasn't her coworker left her relieved and worried; relieved that her coworker hadn't taken a foolish risk but worried about who was actually the cause of this lockdown because she had a name in the back of her mind and as much as she wanted to deny it, she knew in her heart it was...

"It was Harry Potter. He began shifting as I delivered him to his detention. I saw him run into the forest as I made my way to the castle," Mason said nervously. "I couldn't stay and risk getting bit; I'm sorry, Dumbledore. The poor thing; he was terrified. Had no clue what was happening or why. Asked to be taken to the hospital wing before I bolted."

Dumbledore nodded and patted Mason on the back.

"When the moon sets, we will put out a small casual search party for him. We have to keep this low key; no other students can find out unless Harry chooses otherwise," Dumbledore said in an authoritative tone. "For now just keep an eye out to make sure Potter doesn't come onto the grounds until morning. I'm going to send an owl down to warn Hagrid," Dumbledore quickly dismissed everyone and went to send the letter.

***LINEBREAK***

When Harry became aware of his surroundings again, he found himself behind Hagrid's house. He was lying in a bush behind Hagrid's and for whatever reason, he was completely naked.

He tried to make sense of this but came up blank. Never in his life had he experienced an urge to run naked through the woods, he tried to rack his brain but everything seemed so fuzzy and vague right now. The only thing he remembered was being outside and a look of fear on Professor Mason's face. He saw Hagrid glance out the window and pale slightly.

Before Harry knew it, Hagrid was rushing outside with a large blanket.

"Harry! Blimey, you gave everyone a right good scare, didn't you? Now let's get you inside and to the hospital wing. I imagine your in a bit of pain," Hagrid said gathering Harry in the blanket and scooping him up as though he was light as a feather. The swift movement made Harry's back and neck hurt and if he wasn't so exhausted, he would have said something.

***LINEBREAK***

Lupin made his way into the hospital wing, his joints ached and his back ached and he was looking forward to a long nap and some of Poppy's potions to bring down the pain. He'd dozed off on the floor in his office for an hour or so after he shifted back to human form. But eventually, the pain in his joints became more bothersome than the exhaustion. As he made his way towards the hospital wing, he passed a distraught looking Hagrid; the giant man's eyes were poufy and red and his cheeks were damp with fresh-fallen tears.

When he stepped into hospital wing he walked into an interesting commotion. Madam Pomfrey, Professor McGonagall, and Professor Dumbledore were trying to calm down a student. Not only was the student wide awake but completely freaked out. Remus could hear sobbing and moaning, the child sounded hysterical and like they were in a great deal of pain. He hated thinking about a student being in distress.

"Please drink the potion," he heard Madam Pomfrey prompt.

But the student seemed too freaked out to even be reason with because Remus could hear the child shaking as Madam Pomfrey brought the potion near their mouth. This appeared to have failed because seconds later, Madam Pomfrey sighed; though she sounded annoyed, she sounded more concerned than annoyed.

"Please, Harry, just a sip," Madam Pomfrey said catching Lupin's attention. Lupin looked closer to see that Harry Potter was sitting up in the bed, as far away from the professors and the nurse. His face was covered in tears and his face was terrified. Lupin figured the boy had probably had a violent nightmare but that didn't explain Dumbledore and McGonagall's presence.

Rather than cooperation the eleven-year-old simply dissolved into tears. Lupin knew this was far from normal behaviour from an eleven-year-old; this. Harry had probably caught something throughout the night but even that didn't explain Harry's behaviour.

When Madam Pomfrey glanced up and saw Lupin sitting on a bed, she didn't even move from her spot and simply pointed to the potions and went back to her Harry who was now vomiting over the side of his bed. Lupin felt his already iffy stomach give a clench at the sound and smell.

Once Harry had finished projectile vomiting onto the floor, the hysterics started again leaving Lupin worried about his best friend's only child. Just how sick was he to bring him to this state. The child was shaking, pale, hysterical and there was a look of pain and discomfort over the child's face. The poor kid looked worse off than Remus felt at the moment.

"He's in shock," Dumbledore muttered. "And I'm sure having a small crowd surrounding him is doing nothing to calm him. So I am going to go and write a letter to Harry's relatives and inform them of... last night's occurrence. Minerva, maybe you can have a word with Lupin while Madam Pomfrey tends to Harry."

McGonagall seemed almost startled by the request but agreed anyway. She gave a gesture for Lupin to follow her into the other room.

"I know you are under some physical distress but this is of a rather urgent and sensitive matter and must be dealt with immediately," she said; her usually stern voice sounded tired and thick. Come to think of it, both professors looked like they didn't sleep at all last night. They both however also looked troubled. Even Dumbledore's eyes lacked their usual twinkle and were instead filled with worry and distress.

"I'm sure you've noticed Harry's emotional state," McGonagall said. "There was a rather surprising incident last night."

Hundreds of situations rolled through his mind from illness to an attack on Harry's life. Had Harry been poisoned? That would explain the vomiting; but if that was the case, why wasn't Severus here to help?

"Is he okay?" Lupin asked first; that was his first concern.

"Yes and no; he will be fine but for right now he's very scared, he's in shock, and the poor thing is exhausted." McGonagall looked almost ready to cry.

From the next room, Lupin could hear that Harry had calmed down some but he was still sobbing. Remus's stomach clenched at the sound of such raw pain and emotion coming from such a small child.

"McGonagall, what happened?" Lupin asked; whatever was wrong was upsetting McGonagall quite a bit.

"Remus; Potter shifted last night. We've been trying to calm him long enough to tell him that he's a werewolf."

With those words, Remus felt his gut clench painfully.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter should be up tomorrow or the day after.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry deals with the reality of his transformation and the after effects.

"Harry shifted? Are you sure?" Lupin asked, hoping he'd heard wrong. He even began wishing for a moment that McGonagall was joking; despite knowing that joking wasn’t in the stern woman’s nature; especially jokes about a matter so serious. 

"Yes and we can get into details later but for now, I was hoping you could help. Talk to him maybe. The poor thing was so worried about getting in trouble or expelled that he asked to go back to his wretched aunt and uncle," McGonagall said making no effort to hide her feelings for the Dursleys. "The boy hasn't a clue what happening and he's freaking out."

Lupin fumbled over to a seat, feeling a headache pushing through. Of course the child was scared! At least when Remus had his first transformation, he’d known what to expect. 

"Okay, start from the beginning; what happened last night?" Lupin asked, worried by what may have happened last night. The possibilities were terrifying and left Remus’s mind spinning. Were obliviators going to be needed? Did anyone get hurt? 

"It wasn't as bad as you'd think. Luckily he'd earned himself detention last night and was being escorted to Hagrid's when it happened. He'd been freaked out and ran into the forest. As a precaution, we still had all students banned from leaving their dorms last night and had Snape and myself keep watch in case he wandered back onto the grounds," McGonagall said, everyone's exhaustion made sense. They'd been up all night on werewolf watch.

"Who knows?" Lupin asked, knowing it was important to keep something like this quiet because the last thing Harry needed was this making the front page of the Daily Prophet.

"Dumbledore, Professor Mason, Snape and myself," McGonagall said. "We've had some professors ask why the lockdown and we simply said it was a confidential matter. Lupin I didn't just ask to speak with you to tell you about Potter's condition..."

"You want me to talk to him," Lupin concluded.

"You're the best person to do it; you knowledge on the topic is unflappable, you're honest and you have first-hand experience," McGonagall said. 

"Harry is my best friends boy; I've known him since he was a baby. I'll talk to him. Would you like me to do it now or later?"

"Drink the whole thing Potter; good boy," Madam Pomfrey had finally gotten Harry to drink the potion she'd presented to him. Perhaps the pain had finally registered and he knew the potion would help.

"What happened?" Harry asked in a shaky voice. "I don't remember anything."

"I can answer that," Lupin said stepping into the room. Lupin winced slightly when he bent over to pick up a chair but he still dragged it over to Harry's bed and said down. Harry wore a short sleeve shirt which revealed a bite mark on his arm.

"When did you get this?" Lupin asked, wondering how thick he was to have not figured out Harry's condition sooner. All the signs were there and he didn’t process it. He felt like smacking himself for not figuring it out sooner. 

"Over Christmas break," Harry said, his voice still trembling. It’s obvious Harry still thought he was in trouble. 

Lupin sighed and rolled up his pants to reveal an identical scar on his own leg.

"I've got one of those, too," he told Harry, watching as Harry's mind started working. "You were bitten by a werewolf."

Somehow Harry managed to pale more than he already had. "Wouldn't that make me a... oh... no! I can't be a werewolf! What about school, my friends?"

Remus felt horrible because no child should have to go through something like this, especially not his cub. The biggest problem Harry should have to deal with now is the Quidditch uniform not being fitted to first-years. 

"Don't worry, everything will be fine. I was turned before I came here and they were really accommodating. I'm sure Professor Snape had already started brewing the Wolfsbane potion for next month, but we'll talk about that later."

"Why can't I remember anything?" Harry asked. The fact that his memory was still so blank left him feeling terrified. He hated not being able to remember anything he’d done and where he had winded up. “The whole night is blank and I really don’t like that. I don’t know what happened.”

Mind you, Harry was scared and freaked out about more than just his lost memories but that seemed to be the most confusing thing because he wound up behind Hagrid’s. Did he hurt anyone? 

"That's normal. I'd be more surprised if you did," Lupin said. "But Harry, I want to make sure you know that I'm here if you ever need to talk. You're going to notice some changes and my door is open 24/7."

"Alright; you two need rest. Go to sleep," Madam Pomfrey said as she shut the curtains. "You can talk later."

Lupin made his way over to his bed and shut his eyes. But sleep didn't come quickly. 

His best friend's son was a werewolf. He was now sentenced to a lifetime of monthly transformation, an emotional roller coaster, and Lupin wanted to do everything in his power to stop it but he couldn't. 

But as hard as telling Harry had been, he shuddered at the idea of telling Sirius. The boy's godfather was not going to be pleased about this. 

Later that evening, Dumbledore came back to the hospital wing with a grave expression. 

"Harry, the Dursleys have responded to the letter I sent this morning; they don't feel comfortable with you coming home but not to worry; we will find a place for you to go. We're going to reach out to your godfather," Dumbledore said. "We will tell his that we request his presence at Hogwarts."

This was going to complicate things but he couldn’t force them to take Harry in if they didn’t feel comfortable with him in their presence. If he dropped Harry off at their house now, they might actually harm him to keep themselves safe around the full moon. 

Sirius, however, had dealt with werewolves before and could handle them regardless of their states of mind. Sirius was also Harry’s godfather and would be thrilled to have him, especially since he’d been trying to gain custody since Harry was a baby. 

Lupin sat up in bed; Sirius was coming to Hogwarts.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius Black agrees to take guardianship of Harry Potter and he's reunited with Remus Lupin

When Sirius Black was summoned to Hogwarts, he was confused but he left as soon as he could. As he stepped out of the fireplace at Hogwarts, the flashbacks began. All of the good times at Hogwarts with James, Remus and the traitor Peter. He was in Professor Dumbledore's office; the first face he spotted was..

"Remus! What are you doing here? Don't tell me they summoned you, too? Whatever it is; we didn't do it!" He said pulling his best friend into a hug. Sirius joked, despite the fact that the serious faces in the room were making the sinking feeling in his gut grow. Something was wrong. 

"Actually, I work here now. I'm the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher," Remus explained happily hugging his friend back. Regardless of the circumstance, he was glad to see the man again. 

"Ah, Sirius, thank you for coming on such short notice! You remember your godson Harry?" 

Dumbledore asked pointing to a mini version of James. The only difference between him and his father was, he had Lily's green eyes. But much to his surprise Harry looked a little bit pale and shaken. Was Harry frightened of him?

"Harry, no need to fear. I'm your godfather!" Sirius announced receiving a confused look from everyone in the room. Harry seemed confused by the statement for a second before he began to slowly shake his head. 

"I'm not scared of you," Harry said, even though several hours had passed since he found out he was a werewolf, he was still quite tired and a little bit dizzy. “I’m not sure who you are but I’m not scared.”

"Harry's condition is part of the reason you've been summoned here today," Dumbledore said gesturing everyone to take a seat. They noticed a large bowl of lemon drops sitting on his desk and Harry, starting to feel peckish for the first time all day, happily took a handful and sat down between his teacher and his godfather. His godfather put his hand on Harry's forehead and frowned at Dumbledore.

"You're aware Harry has a fever, correct?"

"Yes, Sirius; I am well aware of Harry's condition. More so than you at this very moment. The reason you've been summoned here is that we've discovered last night that Harry is a werewolf," Dumbledore said, pausing for a second to let his words sink in. Just like everyone this morning, Sirius' face looked stunned and sad but he quickly tried to cover up the expression.

"Last night? But, last night was the full moon? Has someone been hurt?" Sirius asked.

"No; nothing like that. It's just upon notifying the Dursleys, they have decided that they want Harry to reside elsewhere," Dumbledore said. 

Harry found it amusing how Dumbledore praised it. He wasn't asked to reside elsewhere; he was kicked out and he knew the Dursleys were thrilled to have a reason to do it. 

"As his godfather, that leaves you as legal guardian to Harry Potter; do you accept this role?"

Sirius didn't even hesitate before accepting and smiling at his godson who was starting to look faintly green but he still managed a smile in Sirius' direction.

"May I be excused for a moment?" Harry said before quickly dashing out of the room.

"I'll go check on Harry," Dumbledore said, quickly walking after the boy. "There isn't a bathroom for a while away and..."

"That was a new carpet!" a female voice suddenly cried in the distance.

Sirius looked over to Lupin and began rubbing his temples. It had already been such a long and trying day and it had barely just begun.

"How exactly did Harry get infected?" Sirius asked, not wanting to accuse his friend but not wanted to ignore the possibility either.

Lupin shook his head and frowned. "I'm not 100% but he says it happened over Christmas break. Last night none of us even knew he was going to turn; including Harry himself. 

The only good thing about that night was Harry was outside when it happened and ran off into the forest. But they wound up putting the school under lockdown until the moon set and then Harry was found right behind Hagrid's cottage... There are so many ways last night could have become a disaster and I am so glad it didn't."

"Oh Damn! Does anyone know?" Sirius asked.

"Just Dumbledore, Snape, McGonagall and Professor Mason. Hagrid knows too but only because Harry was extremely close to his house when he turned. Aside from that, it's on a need to know basis," Lupin said, relieved that Harry had been outside when he turned. He shuddered when he thought of the potential blood bath if he'd been in his dorm. It also meant no witnesses.

"Snape? Why Snape?" Sirius asked.

"Well, we can't exactly ask him to make a second wolfsbane potion without explaining why. Especially considering how expensive it is to make. And Harry's got potions on the night of the next full moon," Lupin said laughing.

Sirius nodded; he understood but that didn't mean he had to like it.

"This kid is eleven years old and has already destroyed the most powerful source of evil the world had ever known and now a werewolf bite? What next? Vampires?" Sirius joked.

Dumbledore came back into the room looking flustered and out of breath.

"I've escorted Harry back to the hospital wing," Dumbledore informed. "Remus, he wishes to speak with you later. He's got some questions."

"Yes, I'll be there in a few minutes. I feel terrible for him. That first transformation is always the worst and afterwards is a nightmare. I hate that he has to go through this but all I can really do is be supportive," Lupin whispered quietly.

"That's enough, Remus. Sometimes a supportive hand makes all the difference in the world."

“I’ll go with you, Moony,” Sirius said standing up and following Remus out of Dumbledore’s office to find Harry.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry gets answers to a few questions and the Dursleys get what was coming to them. Harry also finds an ally from an unexpected source.

Sirius found Harry sitting in the hospital wing, sipping a glass of water. To his side sat a bucket. The child still looked pale but his skin was no longer green. Harry was fishing an ice cube out of his cup so he could chew on it.

"Madam Pomfrey doesn't want me to get sick on the floor again," Harry explained pointing to the bucket. Sirius burst into laughter before sitting on the bed opposite Harry. 

"You're going to love staying with me, Harry. I'm going to set up a bedroom for you and just tell me if you don't like it and I'll fix it in a flash," Sirius said, getting more excited by the minute. By the end of the term, he was going to be bouncing off the walls. He’d wanted custody of Harry for years and now he was finally getting it. 

"Planning to spoil the boy already, Sirius?" Lupin laughed.

"Don't worry, Sirius. Anything is better than the cupboard the Dursley's made me sleep in," Harry said laughing; but the grown men found absolutely no humour in that sentence at all. In fact they both seemed angered by it. 

"Cupboard? They made you sleep in a cupboard?" Sirius asked angrily. "Tell me, what was life like at the Dursleys?" Lupin sat down to listen as well because he had been wondering the same thing since he met Harry.

"Petunia would wake me in the morning so I could start breakfast. After I was done making breakfast, I washed the dishes and if I did a good job I got the leftovers. Then I'd go to school and come home. That's when I'd make supper, do the dishes and go to bed.” 

“Sometimes I'd get locked in the cupboard if I was bad for a few days at a time. That was fine since Dudley and his friends couldn't pound on me," Harry said quickly.

By the time Harry was finished telling Remus and Sirius about the Dursleys, he was exhausted and ready to go to sleep. He was so tired that he didn’t notice the glances that Sirius and Remus were sharing. 

After Harry was escorted into the Gryffindor common room, Lupin pulled Sirius aside.

"Sirius, we're going to visit the Dursley's but first we need to visit the Weasley Twins."

Vernon and Petunia were awakened when Dudley threw their bedroom door open to reveal his hair had been turned purple and his skin was flashing between green and yellow. 

Vernon let out a quick wail as he realised his own skin was flashing blue and red. 

Petunia's skin wasn't flashing as much as it was simply glowing but her hair, however, was six ugly shades of green and blue.

"Make it stop! Now!" Dudley demanded and as he stomped his feet down the stairs.  
When they reached the last step, the Dursleys found themselves submerged in some kind of yellow liquid, followed by white and yellow feathers. Petunia and Vernon found themselves receiving fists and feet to their backs as Dudley went into a full meltdown.

"Make it stop! Now!" Dudley wailed again. Then to Dudley's surprise, his father stood up and grabbed Dudley by the front of his feather-covered shirt and looked straight into his eyes.

"Listen, you ungrateful brat! This is the last straw! You are spoiled, have no regard for others and think the world will bow down to you for the rest of your life. Reality check, they won't and you are hereby grounded until further notice. Now clean up this bloody mess and go to your room!"

Dudley, who was not used to being spoken to in such a manner, stomped over to the cupboard under the stairs to retrieve a mop and bucket. When he opened the closet, an endless river of mice began streaming from the cupboard. 

Dudley screamed and hollered as the mice rolled over his feet and his ankles and soon the Dursleys screams could be heard all through Privet Drive.

In the back of the Dursleys house, Sirius and Remus gave each other a high five before apparating away.

"Harry!" Hermione shouted throwing her arms around Harry. "Where have you been? We've been worried sick! You look pale, are you alright?" Ron stood behind Hermione and nodded.

"Yeah, you look like hell," Ron said bluntly in a way only Ron could. Harry couldn’t help but laugh at how normal this situation felt. Hermione worried about him and Ron was blunt. 

"I'm sorry; I've been in the hospital wing. I'm still not feeling 100% but I'm feeling well enough to return," Harry said, the last part was technically true.

"I think you should go upstairs to bed," Hermione said. Harry nodded and began stumbling up the stairs. He soon felt a hand under his arm, Harry turned around to find Ron helping him up the stairs before he could fall.

"We just hated that you disappeared during the lockdown. We didn't know what happened to you," Ron explained on the way upstairs. "What happened anyway?"

"Let's put it this way; I spent a lot of time familiarising myself with the Madam Pomfrey's vomit buckets."

That was all Harry needed to say and no further questions were asked. 

By the time Harry woke up the following morning, he felt much better. Harry found himself starving; probably because he'd thrown up everything he'd eaten recently. 

In the Great Hall, he saw Lupin sitting with the other teachers eating. He knew he'd be able to speak to him in class later because now that he was feeling better; his mind was exploding with questions and Harry needed answers.

So many questions had flooded Harry’s mind and today was the first day that he felt well enough to mentally process them and decide which questions were more important to ask and which ones weren’t important.

One the way to class, Hermione commented on how much calmer Harry was and how his mood must have been the bug he had caught. It was a relief they didn’t ask too many questions.

“Are you ready for classes today? We have potions and DADA,” Hermione told them as they walked out of the great Hall towards potions. 

Potions class was uneventful until the end of class when Professor Snape told Harry to stay after class for a few minutes.

“Mister Potter will see you in your next class,” Professor Snape told Ron and Hermione when they tried to stay behind for moral support. 

As reluctant as they were to leave, they knew it was in their best interest to listen to Snape’s instructions before they were given detention. Once they were gone, Professor Snape gave Harry a calculating look and handing him a bit of parchment. 

“Here is a list of potion ingredients you will want to exercise caution around. None will hurt you after basic exposure but after prolonged exposure, they could present a threat to your health. There is a list of potions we will be covering while you are otherwise indisposed, I will go over those with you at a later date.” Severus looked at Harry to make sure he understood everything he’d been told. Once the boy nodded, he continues talking.

“Once a month, I’ll give you detention to cover your absences and I’ll give you detention for when you come to retrieve your potions from me. Now, go on before you're too late for class.”

Harry couldn’t believe his conversation with Professor Snape. Was the man going to be his ally now? Man, so many questions going through Harry’s mind and so little time.


	7. Chapter 7

Harry found himself unable to pay attention well in class and Lupin didn't even try to force him to pay attention, knowing the boy had a lot on his mind. Snape had even been sympathetic to an extent... which almost alarmed Harry more than his transformation. By the end of class, Harry had made an effort to focus but his mind was so full of questions that he simply couldn't.

"Harry, a word please?" Lupin asked. "I'd like a word about your performance today."  
Harry had expected to be called after class but this wasn’t how he expected it. This made it sound like he was in trouble. 

Hermione put a hand on Harry's shoulder before following Ron out of the room.  
"Harry! How are you doing today? You look better," Lupin asked, eyeing Harry with a critical look.

Harry nodded, he was keeping food down once again and the rooms were no longer spinning when he stood. He sat down on Lupin's couch and realised the couch smelled really strongly of Lupin; the whole room did. 

His senses had magnified recently and he was hearing and smelling things that he couldn't before. 

It was overwhelming; the great hall at breakfast and lunch had been an overwhelming experience with so many smells and so many loud voices. He wondered how many of the older classmates were aware of their own body odours.

"I'm okay; just... overwhelmed I guess. Everything is so loud today and everything smells so strong!" Harry muttered, his head mildly aching. "Is that normal?"

"Oh yes; it's normal and it'll, unfortunately, get more intense as the full moon approaches. It took me awhile to get used to it but I'll do what I can to make it easier for you and Sirius will do everything he can, too."

Harry groaned and fell back against the couch.

"I can't remember anything when I... There was pain and next thing I knew I was naked behind Hagrid's," Harry whispered, his face flushing as he remembered that morning.

Lupin frowned for a second. He had known Harry winded up at Hagrid's but he still trembled at how many ways that night could have turned into a tragedy. Harry could have easily bitten or killed someone and the poor kid wasn't aware what could have happened.

"That's normal, Harry. When the wolf takes over, your human mind tends to go blank. I take a potion that allows me to shift and keep my human mind. You'll be getting it before the next full moon. You'll find the shift less painful and you'll get to keep your human mind intact; mainly so you won't hurt anyone. For next month, we'll head down to the shrieking shack until we see how the potion affects you. If you're anything like me, we'll shift in my office and just take it easy until the moon goes down."

"Hurt anyone? I wouldn't hurt anyone," Harry whispered. He went out of his way to keep those around him safe, even the Dursleys; he would never hurt anyone but then he remembered what he’d read about werewolves and...

"You wouldn't but when you shift, you aren't in control and without the potion, you are volatile, aggressive and unpredictable; it's not just you," Lupin said. "But I promise you; I will not let you hurt anyone."

Harry let the words register and he began to really worry about what had happened on the night of the full moon; had he hurt anyone? Harry didn't like the idea that he had the potential to hurt or kill anyone. The thought was unnerving and very frightening. It sent chills down Harry's spine, but now he understood why the Dursleys didn't want him near the house.

"And I'll be able to stay here..."

"Yes, Harry. I was turned before I came here and they dealt with me... Without the Wolfsbane potion!" Lupin said.

Harry stared at Lupin for a second before a sense of relief washed over him and he felt like he could handle this; maybe this wasn't the absolute worst thing that could have happened to him.

As Harry watched Remus, he tried to come up with another question; actually, he had plenty of questions, he just didn’t know which one to ask next. 

“That’s why the Dursleys refused to take me anymore. I guess I’m glad they’ve finally found an excuse to get away with ditching me. What’s Sirius like?” 

Harry was happy to no longer be under the Dursleys control but he wanted to know what Sirius was like. If he was going to live with the man, it might be a good idea to know what he was like? 

“Sirius is great; he’s funny, kind, a bit childish but he’s protective of those he cares about and he cares about you,” Remus told Harry. Harry raised an eyebrow when he saw Remus’s cheeks turn pink at the mention of Sirius. “He was there when you were born, did you know that?”

Harry shook his head, he hadn’t been told anything about the day he was born, except the date and time. Then Aunt Petunia proceeded to tell him how much she wished he’d never been born. 

“He was named your godfather and has tried to get custody of you since your parents died,” Remus said with a smile; his best friend finally getting his wish.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Should I continue? What do you think?


End file.
